Panels are used as rigid, planar components for producing various structures. Conventional panels generally have a constant thickness and may be manufactured on a large industrial scale. Panels are often produced and used without a frame, i.e. structures are not provided that surround the sides of the panels. Sandwich panels generally comprise a core material which can effectively absorb compressive loads acting across the surface of the cover plies, but are susceptible to damage from compressive point loads, as may occur in particular due to incorrect operations being carried out by persons during furniture construction or interior work. Examples of such core materials include honeycomb structures or hard foams.
Therefore, in particular in lightweight construction, when using sandwich panels, measures are required to protect the core material from damaging effects, and therefore the edges of a panel are protected by edge strips, supporting edges or veneer edges. Hardening filler materials are an option for protecting honeycomb structures, and said materials can fill the honeycombs that are open at the sides. Furthermore, plastics edges in thicknesses of 3 mm to 7 mm may also be glued onto the edges.
Owing to fire-protection requirements, in particular in the field of aviation, the protection of open edges is of particular importance. Conventional edge strips, as are used in general furniture construction, do not provide sufficient fire protection, i.e. flames acting on the edge strip meet with only insufficient resistance and so they will quickly reach the core material therebehind. Conventional edge strips that have a usually decorative metal layer make it possible to meet high fire-protection requirements; however, these strips are only suitable for covered furniture edges when sandwich panels are used, since the compression resistance to point loads is insufficient. In addition, even the smallest scratches on the metal surface quickly become visible. Although the resistance to penetration for point loads could be increased by using considerably thicker metal layers, the processing complexity increases significantly. In addition, the weight would be increased significantly at the same time, and this is undesirable in particular in the field of aviation and is associated with many drawbacks.
Although plastics edges that are specifically approved for aviation have the desired fire resistance at corresponding layer thicknesses, they cannot be produced as rolled goods owing to the layer thickness required, inter alia. Therefore, the plastics edges have to be cut separately for each edge of a panel and have to be matched to the other plastics edges at the corners. Furthermore, the plastics edge may show on the side of the surface of the panel under a finish or a decorative layer, which may be detrimental to the high-quality visual appearance of the panel. Said edges may only begin to show after a longer period of time as a result of standard loads, and therefore the edges showing in an undesired manner cannot be identified during production.
Furthermore, in panels that have particularly high fire-protection requirements, it may be necessary to increase the fire resistance of the conventional cover materials.
The problem addressed by the invention is to provide an edge material, a sandwich panel and a cover layer which overcome the above-mentioned drawbacks.